Good and not so good but right in there

Emirates Team New Zealand update - good and not so good but right in there

Five points from the lead, one point from second at the end of the third day of the Muscat Extreme Sailing Series regatta. Dean Barker and his Emirates Team New Zealand crew had every reason to be happy with the day’s racing.

They think they should have done better.... but it could have been a lot, lot worse.

“It was a very trying, light-air day,” Barker said. ”The sea breeze came up earlier in the day but had fallen away by the time racing started. We never had much more than four knots all day.

“We had to battle for every point in every race. There were a lot of mixed results, not just for us, for everyone. That’s a fair indication of how tough it was racing here today.

“It felt like a very average day but we managed to come ashore in third place, only five points off the lead. It certainly didn’t feel like that on board.

“The day could have gone a lot better, and tomorrow is going to be a very busy day. Whoever sails reasonably smartly tomorrow will have a good chance of being successful.”

Today, the team finished in the top three in five of the eight races sailed.

Extreme Sailing Series™ 2014
Muscat standings after Day 3, 21 races
1st Alinghi (SUI) 132 points.
2nd SAP Extreme Sailing Team (DEN) 128 points.
3rd Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL) 127 points.
4th J.P. Morgan BAR (GBR) 122 points.
5th The Wave, Muscat (OMA) 118 points.
6th Groupama sailing team (FRA) 105 points.
7th Realteam by Realstone (SUI) 102 points.
8th Gazprom Team Russia (RUS) 99 points.
9th Red Bull Sailing Team (AUT) 96 points.
10th Oman Air (OMA) 88 points.
11th GAC Pindar (AUS) 59 points.

Ends

© Scoop Media